Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Shivajirao Patil-Nilangekar today withdrew his petition in the Bombay High Court seeking permission to intervene in the hearing of a petition before the special CBI court accusing him of involvement in Adarsh Housing Society scam.

Justice M L Tahiliyani allowed Nilangekar to withdraw the petition, with the liberty to approach the High Court again at an appropriate stage.

Nilangekar’s lawyer Ashok Mundargi earlier requested the High Court to hear the petitioner and stay the proceedings in the Adarsh case before the CBI court.

The judge, however, noted that the CBI court had not yet decided the application filed by activist Praveen Wategaonkar, who has sought to make Nilangekar an accused in the case. Therefore, he should wait till the trial court passed the order and move the High Court later if aggrieved. The judge also said he would dismiss the petition otherwise after which Nilangekar’s lawyer chose to withdraw it.

The CBI court had on September 17 rejected Nilangekar’s plea seeking to intervene in the hearing of Wategaonkar’s petition.